Cilic meets Wawrinka in Chennai Open finalCHENNAI, India — Defending champion Marin Cilic continued his winning streak against Janko Tipsarevic to enter the final of the 400,000-dollar ATP Chennai Open on Saturday.

The world number 14 from Croatia triumphed 6-1, 6-3 in a semi-final lasting 84 minutes to record his fourth successive win against the 38th-ranked Serbian.

The second-seeded Cilic, favoured to retain the title after top seed Robin Soderling crashed out in the first round, takes on third seed Stanislas Wawrinka of Switzerland in Sunday's final.

The 21st-ranked Wawrinka fought off a tough challenge from number 43 Dudi Sela of Israel before winning the baseline slugfest 6-4, 2-6, 7-5 in two hours and 32 minutes of absorbing tennis.

Wawrinka goes into the final with a 4-0 record against Cilic, but their last meeting was way back at the French Open on 2008 when the Swiss star won a second-round match in straight sets.

"It was a long time ago, it really does not matter now," said Wawrinka. "He won the title here last year, while I lost in the first round.

"I will have to be at my best to beat Cilic because he serves well and is good from the back too. I hope I get the support of the crowd here."

Cilic, who beat Tipsarevic in the quarter-final here last year, ran away with the first set in just 27 minutes after the Serb failed to hold his serve even once.

Tipsarevic, seeded fourth, was broken again in the first game of the second set, allowing Cilic to dominate in front of 1,000 Indian fans at the Nungambakkam Tennis Stadium.

"I know the crowd was with Janko, but I played to my potential and won," Cilic said.

"It is great to be in the final here again, a very good way to start the year. This was my best match in the tournament. I served well and hit well from the back.

"He was trying to come back in the second set, but I did not give him an opening. I feel really good about my game and look forward to returning to the court tomorrow."

Cilic had defeated Indian wildcard Somdev Devvarman in last year's final.

Wawrinka, beaten in the first round here last year, broke Sela in the 10th game to wrap up the first set in 51 minutes.

Sela hit back by breaking Wawrinka in the third and seventh games of the second set which he won easily in 39 minutes to draw level.

Both players traded a break each early in the decider before Sela faltered with his serve in the 12th game to hand Wawrinka victory.

"It was a relief to get out of that one," said Wawrinka. "It was a real tough match because he seemed to return everything I had.

"But I am glad I kept the pressure on till the end and won. It was a good win for me."

Cilic beats Wawrinka in Chennai Open finalMarin Cilic needed two tie-breaks to score his first win in five meetings against Stanislas Wawrinka in the singles final of the $400,000 ATP Aircel Chennai Open tennis tournament, here Sunday for his fourth career pro tour title.

Second seeded Cilic, who won the two-hour, 40-minute clash 7-6 (2), 7-6 (3), was richer by $68,450 and picked up 250 points to become the first player in the tournament history after Carlos Moya (2004, 2005) to annex back-to-back titles, while Wawrinka pocketed $35,980 and 150 points.

Cilic, who at 21 and ranked 14, is reckoned one of the future stars, showed far more variety in his shots and played the big points well besides serving consistently well to emerge a deserving winner.

Cilic's inside-out crosscourt bullets, apart from the trademark double-fisted backhand down the line shots and some crafty soft balls that lured Wawrinka to the net only to be passed were eye-catching as also very effective.

Saturday night, after his semi-final win, Cilic had said of his clash with Warinka that "a lot of things have changed" since the defeat, his fourth in as many meetings, at the 2008 French Open, and the observation was spot on.

The 24-year old Wawrinka, seeded third and ranked 21, rarely displayed the kind of form that had helped him beat World No.1 Roger Federer at the Monte Carlo Masters last year. His fitness was certainly a suspect especially after having played a 2-1/2 hours semi-final match last night.

Wawrinka, the first Swiss to reach the final of this tournament since Thomas Enquist in the inaugural year 1996, was unable to sustain his level of play that alternated between brilliant and ordinary.

The match began rather quietly with both players indulging in long rallies that seemed to favour Cilic far more than Wawrinka who just about survived two break points in the third game, thanks to his big serve, but blew other chances to win the first set.

Wawrinka, seeking his second career ATP title and his first in over three years, had his chances when he served for the set after breaking the Cilic, a quarter-finalist at the 2009 US Open, in the eighth to lead 5-3, but was broken in the very next game. He then wasted breakpoint in the 12th as the set flowed into tie-break where Cilic's solid serves tilted the balance.

The Swiss No.2 was also distracted by a few line calls that went against him besides having a sprained neck attended to courtside when leading 4-3 on serve.

The second set began with back-to-back service breaks in the second and third games. Thereafter both players blew a few breakpoints with Cilic, leading 5-4 on serve, wasting a match point in the 10th as Wawrinka hung on to draw level at 5-5 that inevitably led to a second tie-break.

As in the first set, Cilic's serve proved decisive as a tired looking Wawrinka finally drilled a backhand crosscourt wide and crashed to defeat.